Towns and central government in Northern Europe from the fifteenth century to the industrial revolution

Abstract

Generally speaking, by northern Europe we understand the countries situated on the Baltic: Sweden with Finland, Russia, Poland, north Germany, Denmark, to which Norway when united with Denmark should be added. In this area the form of government was mainly monarchic, although in Germany the political system was more complicated. The superstructure of the Holy Roman Empire continued to exist until 1806, but the effective power of the imperial institutions was rather limited in the non-Habsburg countries, such as north Germany. Far more important were the power relations on the level immediately below the Emperor, where we find a number of monarchically governed states (Territorialstaaten) and independent cities with Reichsfreiheit during our period, e.g. the old Hanseatic cities of Lübeck, Hamburg and Bremen; normally the power of the Territorialfürsten increased to the detriment of urban autonomy.

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Thomas Riis

Thomas Riis, born 1941, M.A. 1968 (Copenhagen), Dr.phil. 1977 (Odense); assistant and professor at th European University Institute, Florence, 1977-1980, in the Department of History and Civilization.